Gucci and Will.i.am are Working Together on a Luxury Wearable

The relationship between Fashion and Technology has been slowly strengthening. A clear indication of this was when Vogue US editors, instead of attending the New York Fashion Week, were seen seated at the Apple Watch unveiling event in Cupertino, last year. Unknowingly, by giving up front row seats to attend Apple’s mega event, the editors made a major statement. Now we have Italian fashion house, Gucci taking a leap into the future.

The mention of the word Gucci takes us to the world of luxury. A huge collection of ready-to-wear, handbags, shoes, and accessories. The products by the Italian fashion brand are exclusive and define class at a new level. Gucci is now planning to stride into the smart band segment along with American rapper, Will.i.am. The co-founder of The Black Eyed Peas appeared at the Baselworld watch fair in Switzerland along with Gucci CEO Marco Bizzarri. The industry biggies announced a fashion-forward wearable and mentioned that the luxury piece would not be dependant on your smartphone (unlike so many other wearable in the market.)

The puls smartwatch launched by Will.i.am last year.

The pop star commented about the upcoming band at the event –

A lot of people are creating wearable devices from a tech background. Gucci has been putting things on your body for years. [Wearable tehnology] is being dictated by the wrong folks. We like to call it fashionology. It’s where fashion and technology meet.

So, the new band will be a fashion accessory with a twist of technology. Will.i.am talked about the features of the next wrist wearable saying that it has a front-facing camera for video calling, a heart-rate sensor, temperature sensor and GPS. The 3G enabled wristband will allow users to make calls, send texts, connect to social networks, and all this without the hassle of being connected to the device.

The move by the non-tech individuals is pretty impressive. The model of detaching wearables from smartphones sounds ideal, and since it’s coming from a top fashion label, the device is sure to be chic